Rob Reiner, Quinta Brunson and more celebrities pay tribute to Norman Lear

Norman Lear, a pioneer of American television and a lifelong political activist, died on Tuesday at the age of 101, his family announced Wednesday morning. Lear was beloved by the industry and audiences alike. He shaped much of what we know of the situational comedy today and continued throughout his life to advocate for the form and the people who create it, as recently as this summer voicing his support for the Writers Guild of America strike. “[It] was people—those he just met and those he knew for years—who kept his mind and heart forever young,” his family said in their statement, and many of those people came forward to pay tribute to Lear on Wednesday, including Rob Reiner, Quinta Brunson, and John Leguizamo, among others.

“I loved Norman Lear with all my heart. He was my second father. Sending my love to Lyn and the whole Lear family,” Reiner wrote on Twitter/X, while Abbott Elementary creator and star Quinta Brunson wrote, “My Goat. What a life. Rest well, Norman Lear.”

“It’s hard to reconcile that at 101 years old, Norman Lear is gone too soon. The entire world of reason just lost its greatest advocate and our family lost a dear friend. A giant walked in his shoes,” George Clooney said in a statement (via Deadline), while Jane Fonda gave her own statement saying, “Today is a very sad day. Norman Lear, a man who meant a lot to many on a personal level and who changed the face and soul of American comedy, has passed. My heart is heavy. I loved Norman.”

“R.i.p. Norman Lear. A master of story telling and a healer through his shows!” Leguizamo shared on his own social media. “He is what all of showbiz should be aspiring to. He is the consummate creative producer we have long abandoned in the industry.” Meanwhile, The Wire creator David Simon wrote, “Anyone who ever had a chance to say something pointed or political in an American television entertainment owes Norman Lear their adoration and awe. He saw what was possible in that vacuous glowing box and, almost singularly, he made it so.”

“It is obviously silly to want more time with a person who outlived a whole century but losing Norman Lear, even at 101 years old, feels unfair. His bravery, integrity and unmatched moral compass were equaled by his kindness, empathy, and wit,” Jimmy Kimmel said in a statement (via Deadline). “Norman was very proud of the fact that the so-called Reverend Jerry Falwell dubbed him ‘The number one enemy of the American family.’ The opposite was true. More than anyone before him, Norman used situation comedy to shine a light on prejudice, intolerance, and inequality. He created families that mirrored ours, showing us a world in which Archie Bunker and Michael Stivic could learn to not only co-exist, but to love one another. As a young man, Technical Sergeant Lear flew 52 combat missions over Nazi Germany. He continued to fight for freedom all the way to the end of his life on earth. Even at 101, Norman cared as much about the future, our children, and planet or as anyone I have ever known. He was a great American, a hero in every way and so funny, smart, and lovely man you almost couldn’t believe it. The privilege of working alongside Norman and the opportunity he gave me and my wife to get to know him and his beautiful family has been among the great honors and pleasures of my life. We were all very lucky to have him.”

“Without the goat who do we have left? Thank you for everything you taught us about ourselves and the lessons your children of the pen (like @quintabrunson Michael Schur & others) will hopefully be able to keep teaching us for many years to come. RIP,” playwright and actor Jeremy O. Harris posted, sharing a selfie from a dinner with Lear. “You were always so kind and curious with new writers and it’s one of the great honors of my life to have gotten to know you even a bit. Your whole family was full of gems and that’s bc you were a crown jewel.”

“Norman lived a life of curiosity, tenacity, and empathy. He deeply loved our country and spent a lifetime helping to preserve its founding ideals of justice and equality for all,” his family said in their statement. “He began his career in the earliest days of live television and discovered a passion for writing about the real lives of Americans, not a glossy ideal. At first, his ideas were met with closed doors and misunderstanding. However, he stuck to his conviction that the ‘foolishness of the human condition’ made great television, and eventually he was heard.”

Read on for more tributes to Lear from Billy Crystal, Albert Brooks, Jon Stewart, and more.